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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. face — to point toward
  4. face — part of the head
  5. file — a document
  6. wound — an injury
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. net — in sport
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. present — there
  13. mark — a grade
  14. net — for catching
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. present — the time now
  18. file — a line of people
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. net — after costs
  21. wound — an injury
  22. mark — a trace
  23. present — a gift
  24. file — a tool

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com